Hurst Out!

Quoted from WetFlannel

Interesting how one kick by Jon Paul Pittman could've been the difference between Hurst being a 'manager who can't get a team promoted' to being the pride of the town.

Quoted from Bigdog

First of all may I thank all of the Fishy posters for the entertainment over the past few years.

I've finally bitten the bullet to air my opinion on this season and where the club stands.

For all of his mistakes which led us into non-league wilderness, John Fenty has to be applauded for his continued investment in the club. My problem with him is that although he is an ardent fan, he has little knowledge of the game and no experience in playing football, so unqualified as such to select the right manager.

If you look at the players, there are no real problems with the goalkeeper, three full backs, Tait, Robertson, East and three centre halves, Nsiala, Pearson, Gowling over the season. We have two strong performers in centre midfield in Disley and Clay. Clay has a great engine and is brilliant at winning the ball back, unheralded by some who only watch games when Town have the ball. How the hell he was dropped by Hurst twice I don't know. My friends who support other teams have always highlighted Clay as one of our best players. Dis is solid but I also think he has looked a little leggy this season. He is invaluable on the pitch and his leadership skills and experience should have been accommodated at times in a 3-5-2. Hurst was a full back so he's all about the predictable 4-4-2. If I were an opposing manager of a lesser team, it would be so easy to counteract the 4-4-2 with a 4-5-1 and flood the midfield if you set out to be negative or 3-5-2 to be positive. Every team in this league knows no matter what Hurst will play a 4-4-2. This is just not good enough to get us out of this league. As management goes it's inept. Our wide players have all been poor to average this year. Arnold at times shows flashes of brilliance but not consistently enough yet works hard in trying to win the ball back. For me, if a manager offers a friend a contract, that player has to be one of the best performers every week. Monkhouse is definitely not that. A great footballing brain without the legs to go with it. Pace frightens full backs not heading ability. Hardly notice him in most games apart from the reverse pass routine with Robertson from throw ins. Mackreth just wasn't good enough whereas Marshall at his best is far better than Monkhouse and Mackreth, more of a threat but has had little opportunity, now seemingly frozen out by Hurst and his confidence as a result looks shot. Up front it's obvious that Amond and Bogle are both class for this division in their own way and have done extremely well with the lack or service from behind them. They have been messed around by Hurst at times when it was clear to see if they didn't fire for a game or two they eventually would. That partnership should have been backed at all times barring injury. Footballers learn their trade on the pitch not sat on the bench like naughty schoolboys. Bogle and Amond both seem to be strikers that would benefit from us playing more football through a midfield three than the long ball which has been played too often this season.  How Ben Tomlinson was seen as a better option to either of them I do not know. JPP for me is not good enough as the primary back up striker to get out of this division and other than Alex Jones this has been a gaping hole in our squad all season. Lack of dangerous width, an alternative formation and tinkering with the wrong players at the wrong times has cost us this season big time.

Lets look at player acquisition too. To Hurst's credit Amond was a masterstroke. Bogle was a good signing but hardly a stroke of genius as every man and his dog was after him. Conor Townsend was brilliant and exactly the profile of footballer we should be signing in the loan market, a talented youngster not getting games at Championship level, to a lesser extent the same could be said of Alex Jones. After that we've had Nolan who seems ok at best then a long list of wasted opportunities to strengthen the squad, Tomlinson, such a bad touch for a striker, Robinson, not a patch on Clay, Alabi, Henderson, Horwood and Straker. Hurst in some eyes has a reputation for finding a player. For every good one he finds he signs two or three bad ones and tinkers with the team to accommodate them and upsets spirit in the dressing room. Not good enough in my book. Every signing has to count and make a difference. Just look at what Gary Johnson has done at Cheltenham.

So where are we now. I've seen on the Fishy the usual give Hurst til the end of the season, he might get us through the play-offs. There is a chance of that. But how about this. We get rid of him now and invest in a proper experienced manager who will have around fifteen good players to work with this season. I think it's a given we would make the play-offs at least and also give that manager time to build relationships with the players in order to be in a position to resign the best of them for the following season whatever division we are in. To not act now could set us as a football club back years as we wave goodbye to Gowling, Amond, Bogle, Nsiala, Tait, Clay, Arnold etc at the end of the season as Hurst won't take us up, gets fired and leaves the players in disarray.

The other unacceptable things about Hurst are his negativity, building the opposition up and his I know best attitude. All traits of someone who is protecting himself. He also never admits any mistakes. He belittles our fans by telling them we don't know enough about the game to know what he knows. This is just rubbish. I myself have played in a couple of leagues below where Town are now and against a fair few league sides. I'd like to think I could put an alternative and valid point of view to Hurst in a conversation about the club I love rather than him telling me I don't know enough about the game. And then there's the spoilt comment after Boreham Wood. Aren't we all in this together?

Finally, all we can do as fans is continue our fantastic support home and away which makes me so proud to be a fan of this club. What else have we got to offer prospective players other that a guaranteed sh4g in Cleethorpes every Saturday night. Our support sets us apart from every other non-league club and we've got to stick together until we get back to where we belong, hopefully with a new stadium in the offing. If John Fenty has a football brain and can afford it, hopefully he will be ruthless and sack Hurst now and invest wisely in a manager that can take us up, retain our best players and also be in this together with us, the fans.

Feel slightly better now that's off my chest, but 4-2 at Halifax FFS.

UTM

Quoted from TheRonRaffertyFanClub

Know what? I have a feeling that PH hasn't just lost the fans, he's lost the dressing room too. The performances in 2016 are not those of a team that is playing for its manager. There have been too many silly selections this season, too many poor quality signings and still no sign that the manager's tactical nous has improved at all. He doesn't seem to be able to help the side when the going gets tough. He's a training ground wallah not a dugout manager.

I don't think Fenty would act just because the fans are unhappy but even he must know a manager who doesn't have the confidence of the team is a liability.